Most of you guys are on your computer as much as I am – if not more. So we have all had the occurrence of having something important happening on screen along with someone in our ear trying to speak to us at the same time. What happens? Usually for me, I end up with a jumbled message of both what they were saying and what is on my screen. Try having someone say something to you as you read this article and see what happens.

Too many times in education either as a student, teacher or being trained I have seen the individual that uses their slides of the presentation to be their presentation outline. They use bulleted points to some up what they are saying, often times with so many bullets that the font is super tiny and beyond my ability to read. They assume that the bullets enhance their message because it sums up what they are saying, but it’s not what happens. We end up trying to read while they talk, and no progress is made. The message is not enhanced. It’s obscured.

Think about it. As teachers we often hold off on passing things out so that they aren’t reading something as we are talking. So why would we expect the results to be different just because it’s a slide.

Now think of the picture books you were read as a youngster. Simple illustrations enhanced the words. They used a picture that illustrated what the words were saying. This is enhancement. The difference is this. When you use a single picture it connects everything else to that one point. When you put multiple bullets on a page and begin talking where is the connection? It doesn’t funnel down the information into a single meaning. Thus the audience reads as you talk.

The solution? Simplify. The purpose of adding visual to what you are saying is simplify not add. It needs to connect everything we are saying for the moment into one grand perspective. Try using single pictures, graphs, one word or short statements that focus the information.

Garr Reynolds has an incredible online resource for those wanting to improve their presentations. It has everything from tips on creating your slides to preperation guidelines. These tips can be found here Presentation Tips.

Here are a couple other resources for improving your presenting skills:

Garr Reynolds has an extraordinary set of tips for improving any presentation. Here
Let us know your resources and thoughts in the comments.